The Annihilation of the Longsong Noble Alliance
The Annihilation of the Longsong Noble Alliance, also known as the Pursuit of the Longsong Noble Alliance, was a conflict between [[Roland Wimbledon|'Roland Wimbledon's']] First Army and the remaining forces of [[Osmond Ryan|'Osmond Ryan's']] noble coalition. The battle took place a day after The Defensive Battle of Border Town and it was the First Army's pursuit and subsequent ambush on Osmond's beleaguered army which was yet to recover from the defeat at Border Town. Overview Osmond's forces consisted of less than 1500 men (having taken multiples loses at Border Town), most of whom were freemen and mercenaries. Although a majority of the 300 knights that made up the cavalry force were slain during the attack on Border Town, there were still many knights present. Notable commanders include Osmond Ryan, [[Hirte Medde|'Hirte Medde']], [[Rene Medde|'Rene Medde']], and Shalafi Hull. The First Army had nearly 300 men and consisted of Border Town civilians who were professionally trained and drilled to quickly carry out repetitive orders. 270 soldiers of the flintlock squad were armed with Roland's Flintlocks while the remaining soldiers manned the 4 12-pound field artilleries. They also used the Littletown to quickly and easily transport the heavy cannons. Members of the Witch Union were also present but they didn't participate in the battle. Notable commanders include Roland Wimbledon, [[Carter Lannis|'Carter Lannis']], [[Iron Axe|'Iron Axe']],' Brian' and [[Tigui Pine|'Tigui Pine']]. Chronology Prelude After the humiliating failure and defeat at the hands of Roland Wimbledon and the First Army, Osmond Army was finally able to reorganise whatever was left of his army. Although Rene Medde managed to survive, many knights were killed in the previous battle, and those who did survive were unable to describe how the seemingly defenceless Border Town was able to defeat the combined might of the Western Region's nobles. With their fighting capacity crippled, the Longsong nobles could only plot their next course of action as they licked their wounds. Unbeknownst to them however, their movements were being closely monitored by Lightning, with the rest of the First Army not that far behind. Via the concrete boat, Littletown two cannons and their respective cannon teams, members of the Witch Union, roughly 135 infantry armed with flintlocks as well as Roland Wimbledon himself were transported to the backside of the Duke's army while the remaining 135 other infantrymen were led by Carter to attack from the front. Thanks to Lightning monitoring the scouts from the Duke's army, the first army was easily able to avoid being detected by the Nobles. Like the noble forces, the first army also set up camp nearby and rested for a night. The attack started the next day at the break of dawn with the sound of cannon fire. Battle Split into two teams, one which was lead by Carter and one that was lead by Iron Axe, the First Army surrounded the Longsong camp with Carter's team attacking at the front and Iron Axe waiting in the Longsong camp's rear. With the signal from Lightning, Carter launched the attack with his force of 150 men and 2 cannons. Startled by the sudden attack and remembering the experiences of the previous battle, the Longsong forces, knights and mercenaries alike routed under bombardment and volley fire. However, the team led by Iron Axe intercepted the fleeing soldiers, capturing those who surrendered and gunning down all others. Realising that the battle was lost, Osmond Ryan's attempted to organise a charge and make a breech in First Army's lines so that he could flee back to Longsong Stronghold. However, he was shot down before he could close the 100 meter distance. The rest of his forces capitulated soon after. Aftermath Other than Osmond Ryan, he ambush also lead to the death of Hirte Medde presumably alongside other knights, nobles and mercenaries while the remaining survivors surrendered. With this, the Longsong Noble Alliance was officially defeated and disbanded. Ryan's severed head was taken to Longsong Stronghold to demoralise the garrison there and allowed the First Army to take over the fortress with minimal resistance. During the annexation of the city, Duke Ryan's family attempted to escape along with ten of their guards but they were spotted by Lightning and subsequently captured. The surrendered knights and nobles were ransomed to their families while the Duke's castle was plundered for its stored resources. In order to ensure that the Stronghold remains in Roland's control, he only allowed the Honeysuckle family to retain their knights since they (more particularly Petrov Hull) pledged to manage the Stronghold for Roland while he remained in Bordertown. With the fighting capacity of the other opposing forces within the Western Region virtually eliminated, Roland's rule as the Lord of the Western Region was now cemented. The other factions of Graycastle, particularly the new king and Roland's elder brother, Timothy Wimbledon and the Church were surprised by Roland's unexpected victory. The Church even promised to support Roland in his efforts through offering him some miracle pills. However, Roland's rule would not remain uncontested and the Western Region would then be subjected to several (failed) military incursions by Timothy in the King's attempts to unify the Kingdom of Graycastle. References # Chapters 117-118 Category:Events Category:Battles Category:War for the Crown Category:Reunification